I thought these pieces were more than just a sartorial adaptation of the concept of finger-painting: the deliberate placement of the hands on to the chest and the crotch, and the way these imprints were smudged (subtle and uneven on the shirt, scandalously violent on the groin) said something else. There was just something so haunting about them; for some reason, images of a painter-ghost-lover feeling up the artist in inappropriate places raced through my mind.

But I couldn’t wait five years to find this collection severely marked down in some outlet store in the middle of nowhere; so I decided to take matters into my own hands, pun very much intended. Armed with leftover paints from the previous DIY project,

yellow oxide and cobalt blue acrylic paints

and a white shirt that was too old and too large to be worn smartly,

white H&M button-down (Be sure to line the inside with newspapers to prevent the paint from bleeding through to the back.)

I went on my second DIY Alexander McQueen project. To infuse my own spin into Mr. McQueen’s idea, I used two brighter colors instead of one for a more humorous, less eerie feel. There isn’t much of a science to the process really, I just poured paint over my hands and stamped them on to the shirt. I first stamped on neat imprints of my hands, let them dry, and then added the smudges an hour later. Here is the finished product:

I kept the imprints fairly asymmetrical, and for added interest, marred the cobalt blue with little blotches of yellow oxide.

Here it is worn, with pristine white pants which are the ultimate contrast to all the dirty on top. I also double-watched for that little hint of deranged artist.

dandy you genius. looks so clean with an all white outfit. simple idea, i need to get a move on with this. i only have 1 white shirt though so not just yet.

CamieJuly 3rd, 2009 at 5:31 am

@ drunkenhaze: LOL. Bentang benta sakin mga hirit mo. XD

Style Salvage SteveJuly 3rd, 2009 at 9:09 am

Great work! Such a fun and simple DIY – the best kind!

IsabelJuly 3rd, 2009 at 9:10 am

EPIC DIY! Honestly Izzy, it looks spectacular and I love how you've paired it into an all white outfit.

-hJuly 3rd, 2009 at 10:26 am

i agree with everyone else, it looks good with the all white.you are so good at this diy stuff!

MarkeseJuly 3rd, 2009 at 2:19 pm

I do not have the gonads to freaking do what you do!! Like even though it looks easy I would be so scared I'd mess up that I undoubtedly would!! I love the outfit

Hapsical BlogJuly 3rd, 2009 at 6:56 pm

This is so good.. I love that you're doing Spring 2010 McQueen in Spring 09 (two seasons ahead of everyone else) and you made it look so easy (and the result looks so like the McQueen) I don't think anybody who saw this will be able to justify dropping £500 or whatever on the actual one! Great Stuff!

james v.July 3rd, 2009 at 10:43 pm

The hand prints really pop with an all white outfit like that and its making me chuckle. You always do great d.i.y. projects!

izzyJuly 4th, 2009 at 12:43 am

Thanks for the positive feedback everybody. I don't usually do all-white, but I'm glad it worked out well.

FreyaJuly 4th, 2009 at 8:45 am

now that's nice! whenever I try doing any painting on fabric, it turns out to be disastrous.